Sunday fundraiser for Goforth family also effort to bridge communities

Quanell X says effort to prove there's no war against police

Updated 12:59 am, Monday, September 7, 2015

Carl Johnson hold﻿s a sign with the photograph of slain deputy Darren Goforth ﻿as he and Maurice Lam Jr. collect money from drivers at Southmore Boulevard and Texas 288 to give ﻿to ﻿Goforth's family. ﻿ less

Carl Johnson hold﻿s a sign with the photograph of slain deputy Darren Goforth ﻿as he and Maurice Lam Jr. collect money from drivers at Southmore Boulevard and Texas 288 to give ﻿to ﻿Goforth's family. ... more

Photo: Marie D. De Jesus, Staff

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Maurice Lamb Jr. watches for cars during a fund raiser in the corner of Southmore Blvd. and 288 service road in Houston, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015. Lamb and other members of the African-American community took over the corner as a way to show support to the Darren Goforth family. less

Maurice Lamb Jr. watches for cars during a fund raiser in the corner of Southmore Blvd. and 288 service road in Houston, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015. Lamb and other members of the African-American community took over ... more

Photo: Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle

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Maurice Lamb Jr. raises money from drivers to give it to the family of slained deputy Darren Goforth. The fundraising event took place in the corner of Southmore Blvd. and 288 service road in Houston, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015. less

Maurice Lamb Jr. raises money from drivers to give it to the family of slained deputy Darren Goforth. The fundraising event took place in the corner of Southmore Blvd. and 288 service road in Houston, Sunday, ... more

Photo: Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle

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James Dixon, right, and Carl Johnson, left, ask for money in the corner of Southmore Blvd. and 288 service. The funds raised are going to be given entirely to the family of Darren Goforth, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015. less

James Dixon, right, and Carl Johnson, left, ask for money in the corner of Southmore Blvd. and 288 service. The funds raised are going to be given entirely to the family of Darren Goforth, Sunday, Sept. 6, ... more

Photo: Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle

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James Dixon holds a bucket with the funds collected. It took about an hour to collect money in the corner of Southmore Boulevard and the 288 service road in Houston, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015. The money raised will be given entirely to the family of Darren Goforth. less

James Dixon holds a bucket with the funds collected. It took about an hour to collect money in the corner of Southmore Boulevard and the 288 service road in Houston, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015. The money raised ... more

Photo: Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle

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Maya Wrought holds a sign showing the photograph of deputy Darren Goforth as a way to show support to his family. Wrought and others raised funds for the family in the corner of Southmore and the 288 service road, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015 in Houston. less

Maya Wrought holds a sign showing the photograph of deputy Darren Goforth as a way to show support to his family. Wrought and others raised funds for the family in the corner of Southmore and the 288 service ... more

Photo: Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle

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Linda Brown asks a driver to slow down in a corner where money was raised to benefit the family of Darren Goforth, the Harris County Sheriff Department deputy that was murdered. Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015 in Houston. less

Linda Brown asks a driver to slow down in a corner where money was raised to benefit the family of Darren Goforth, the Harris County Sheriff Department deputy that was murdered. Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015 in ... more

Photo: Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle

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Sunday fundraiser for Goforth family also effort to bridge communities

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Sunday saw yet another fundraiser for the family of Harris County Deputy Darren Goforth, whose killing has inspired numerous vigils and donations of roughly $500,000 from across the nation.

But this was a fundraiser that Debra Henderson, 62, had to see to believe. So she drove from her home in Cypress to a Denny's at the corner of Highway 288 and Southmore for a gathering arranged by prominent African-American activist Quanell X - a fact that Henderson found odd.

Henderson has friends who have posted comments on Facebook about what they perceive to be silence from the black community after Goforth was shot 15 times at a Cypress-area gas station Aug. 28. Shannon Miles, 30, is charged with capital murder in the case.

Henderson's profile picture features the "all lives matter" slogan that has gained traction in reaction to the "black lives matter" movement. She's also posted pictures with "police lives matter" and three days after Goforth's death, she posted one calling on the president to speak on the matter. "Your silence speaks volumes," it said.

Mounting tensions

Goforth's killing - and the reaction from police officials who, despite a lack of apparent motive in the case, pointed to the mounting tension between police and the black community - have broadened the gulf between those communities and heightened racial tensions, those who turned out to the fundraiser Sunday said.

But the attention his death has drawn has also created an opportunity. While the stated goal of the gathering, which drew about 30 people, including police officers and black and white residents, was to raise money for Goforth's family, it was also clearly an effort to bridge the gap between communities.

"The black community is not against you," Bishop James Dixon said before the group took to intersections in the area to collect money. "Many have not known exactly what to do. Many of us were there at the funeral service Friday."

In the nine days since Goforth's death, people have given hundreds of thousands to his family. An online fundraiser has brought in nearly $300,000 alone, and people have donated at several other events like Sunday's.

'A turning point'

But his death stands to do even more for the community at large, if people act on it in the right way, and Sunday was an example of that, said Ray Hunt, the president of Houston's police union.

"We believe this could be a turning point for the city, the state and the nation," Hunt said Sunday. "We have seen and heard support from the Houston community from all races."

Members of the Houston Police Officers' Union will launch a "pray for police" campaign on Tuesday morning. They plan to distribute 20,000 light blue wristbands and have a 24-hour prayer team.

Numerous instances of police brutality against African-Americans have drawn attention nationally and spurred many to action. The tension between police and the black community is at an all-time high, Quanell X said Sunday. He held the event to work toward easing those tensions.

"Many believe we're at war with the police, and that's not the case," Quanell X said. "It's important to send a message that we don't hate all cops ... We must fight against corrupt cops, rogue cops. From everything I've seen (Goforth) wasn't that. He represents all of us because he was one of the good ones."

That was something Henderson said she could get behind.

"I lived through the '60s," she said. "I don't want to do it again."

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